Chapter 66: Turning the Tables

"Wow! What is this thing? Is it alive?" Fan Qianjun exclaimed with intense curiosity as he saw the gigantic golden crab that Chu Feng had just produced.

"Young Master Chu, could this be a high-grade puppet crafted by the Heavenly Mechanism Mu family?" Lei Jianqin asked.

"That's right, this is a Swiftstride Puppet. It can help martial artists traverse extremely treacherous terrain!" Chu Feng nodded, holding a small round disc that controlled the puppet. He leapt onto the back of the massive crab and called to Tang Jiao, "Junior Sister Tang, come up. This Swiftstride Puppet will let us advance and retreat freely, as swift as the wind!"

"Thank you so much, Young Master Chu!" Tang Jiao was deeply grateful. With this Swiftstride Puppet to carry her, it was as if he had given her a new leg. Her gratitude toward Chu Feng was beyond measure.

"Tang Jiao, you mustn’t go up there!" Suddenly, Liu Run shouted loudly.

"Liu Run, what nonsense is this! Tang Jiao’s hurt her foot—why shouldn’t she ride Chu Feng’s Swiftstride Puppet?" Fan Qianjun retorted angrily.

"Tang Jiao, you are my woman. I forbid you to sit on the Swiftstride Puppet so close to Chu Feng!" Liu Run declared loudly. Though the crab’s back was quite broad, with a man and woman standing together, it was much like two people sharing a small boat. Watching them, Liu Run felt as if his woman was together with another man, his fiancée being taken before his very eyes.

"Liu Run, you are truly selfish! Just to spare your own feelings, you’d force Tang Jiao to endure pain in her foot? Your heart is even narrower than the eye of a needle!" Chu Feng mocked him loudly, then turned to Tang Jiao. "Junior Sister, pay him no mind—just come up!"

"All right!" Tang Jiao nodded, completely ignoring Liu Run. Without so much as a glance in his direction, she planted her dragonbone bow upon the ground and vaulted lightly onto the crab’s back, landing right beside Chu Feng.

"Thank you, Young Master Chu," Tang Jiao said with a soft smile.

"You’re most welcome, Junior Sister," Chu Feng replied, returning her smile.

Seeing this, Liu Run was beside himself with rage, shouting incoherently. Though Tang Jiao had done nothing improper with Chu Feng, Liu Run felt as if she had betrayed him right in front of his face, flaunting her affection for Chu Feng.

"Tang Jiao, you… you shameless woman!" Liu Run’s face was livid as he ground the words out between clenched teeth.

A sudden shriek escaped Liu Run, this time in agony. A fist-sized Thunderweb Sand Spider had latched onto his foot and sunk its fangs deep into the flesh. Liu Run stabbed the spider through with his sword and flung it away before quickly applying both an internal elixir and medicinal powder to his wound.

"Heh! Liu Run, just now you mocked Tang Jiao, saying she deserved to be bitten by a Thunderweb Sand Spider. Now that you’ve been bitten as well, how does it feel?" Chu Feng laughed openly. "And what’s even more contemptible—when Tang Jiao was hurt, you didn’t offer her any medicine. Now that it’s you, you’re quick to treat yourself inside and out!"

"Hmph! And who are you to criticize me?" Liu Run sneered arrogantly. "If Tang Jiao had come to help me earlier, and hurt her foot, naturally I would have given her medicine. But as she didn’t help me, why should I help her? That would be pointless, wouldn’t it?"

Though he spoke as if he had reason on his side, the faces of those nearby showed only deep disgust. Tang Jiao, however, maintained her composure, as if Liu Run were speaking to someone else entirely; she neither grew angry nor shed another tear.

"Liu Run, I have a question for you," Chu Feng suddenly said.

"What is it?" Liu Run replied coldly.

"I want to know, with such vile character and a heart so cruel, does your father Liu Shenghua know what kind of person you are?" Chu Feng asked with a smile.

With a swish, Liu Run waved his sword through the air. "Chu Feng, don’t get cocky! Don’t think that just because my foot’s injured, I won’t strike at you!"

"Heh, there’s no need to provoke me; I won’t fight you. The twin-tailed Thunder Apes alone are enough for you to handle. As much as I disdain you, I won’t stoop to bullying you alongside the Thunderbeasts. Ha!" Chu Feng laughed heartily.

Now, Chu Feng had shifted from a passive stance to an active one regarding Liu Run. Previously, he had simply wanted to see what Liu Run was plotting—whether their conflict was merely about the Golden Battle Python or if there was a deeper reason.

By now, Chu Feng was nearly certain their feud was not just about the Golden Battle Python; underlying motives ran deeper. So, it was time to take the initiative.

Provoke him. Enrage him!

If Liu Run had any schemes to put into action, anger might force him to reveal his hand early, making it far easier for Chu Feng to intervene.

"Hmph! Chu Feng, I won’t waste my breath with you. Let’s see who laughs last!" Liu Run snorted coldly, ignoring Chu Feng from then on.

Afterward, Chu Feng and Tang Jiao stood together on the back of the Swiftstride Giant Crab; Chu Feng thrust his spear at the Thunderbeasts, while Tang Jiao drew her dragonbone bow and loosed arrow after arrow, skillfully assisting him.

Their coordination was seamless—spear and bow in perfect harmony. Standing shoulder to shoulder on the crab’s shell, they appeared every bit the devoted pair, advancing and retreating as one.

Liu Run, wounded by the Thunderweb Sand Spider and further stung by Chu Feng’s ridicule, found his arrogance diminished. Watching Chu Feng and Tang Jiao fight side by side, he could only scowl and pretend not to notice.

With Chu Feng leading the way and Liu Run silenced, the team found a new harmony. Whenever they encountered a Thunderbeast, they slew it and pressed on steadily.

The Wind and Thunder Stone Caverns stretched on endlessly, rife with unexplored regions. Even the known areas were vast; just the western to eastern route of the "Three" path alone spanned more than five hundred li.

According to the Wind and Thunder Martial Hall’s plan, this squad of five would spend seven to ten days here dispelling the Calamity of Wind and Thunder. If, after ten days, the calamity was not quelled, disaster would be upon them—the twelfth day would see the calamity fully unleashed!

At that point, storms, tempests, and showers of stone would ravage the Wind and Thunder Martial Hall, laying waste to the land. Many masters would die trying to fend off the disasters.

One hundred and twenty years ago, the ninth Calamity of Wind and Thunder had set the Hall back fifty years in a single night.

With each passing cycle, the calamity only grew stronger. Should this tenth Calamity of Wind and Thunder break free, the Martial Hall’s strength could regress eighty or even a hundred years. Then, the Hall would no longer be able to stand among the Four Great Powers—it would be erased from their ranks.

In short, this tribulation threatened the very survival of the Wind and Thunder Martial Hall, and everything now depended on Chu Feng’s performance.

But what Chu Feng watched most closely was not the Thunderbeasts—but Liu Run’s every move.